A Call to Trial
by Winter
Summary: A young clanner defends his honour in a trial of greivance. Justice by combat


A Call to Trial  
  
By Edward Weldon  
  
  
The dropship shook as it entered the atmosphere. Star Captain Mikyle Malphus didn't   
know the planet's name and he didn't care. He was here to defend his honour.  
  
An Inner-Sphere Surat had challenged him to a trial of grievance and Mikyle was bound   
by his honour as a member of Clan Jade Falcon to respond. All Mikyle knew about this   
stravag he was supposed to fight was that he was a mechwarrior and that he had some   
knowledge of Clan tradition.  
  
Climbing the gantry and settling into the cockpit of his customised Mad Cat MK2, he set   
about checking every system. The huge battlemech shuddered slightly as the reactor   
powered up with a high pitched whine.   
  
Mikyle Malphus was from the same sibco that had produced Nicoli Malphus, the great   
nemesis of Major Steiner and his First Somerset Strikers. He was a tall young man aged   
around twenty-eight, with steel grey eyes, short cropped black hair and smooth, reptilian   
good looks. Combined with the war paint like nero-sensor nets, grafted to his head and   
face, he seemed the paragon of the Clan warrior caste.  
  
The maintenance crews cleared the deck as the drop siren sounded. As the last of the   
crew sealed up the bulkheads, the mech-bay doors opened and the howling turbulence   
rushed in. A wolfish grin crossed Mikyle's features as the massive ninety ton war   
machine accelerated, pounding across the bay.   
  
Leaping out the door, the assault-mech's jump jets fired slowing its decent so it wouldn't   
crater as it hit the ground. Touching down Mikyle torso-twisted left and right examining   
the terrain. The sight chosen for the trial was a desert planet some where in the outer   
regions of the Draconis Combine.   
  
Opening a channel on all frequencies he tried to raise his opponent to issue the Batchal. "I   
am Star Captain Mikyle Malphus. I hereby accept the challenge to Trial of Grievance. I   
commit to battle my Mad Cat MK2, name your self and your forces," He stated in a cool,   
level tone. After a second or two of crackling static, the response came back. "I am   
Master Sargent Heero Rentoshi and I commit my Mauler with which to punish you for   
your crimes," The reply snapped back.   
  
Mikyle was surprised that the Inner-Sphere wet-nose was able to control his anger long   
enough to respond in a reasonable manor. "And what crime would that be?" He asked,   
with a slightly amused tone. When Rentoshi replied the rage in his voice was clear "What   
crime? WHAT CRIME? I am son to a murdered father and Mother and you were their   
killer." A short chuckle escaped Mikyle's throat "Hmmm, you expect me to remember   
every pathetic, fleshy-headed mutant I crush under my mech's foot? Well I hope your   
tracking me down was worth it because soon you'll be joining them, queath?"   
  
With that Mikyle moved out at full throttle. Accelerating and then igniting his jump jets   
again, he took position on a ridge overlooking the rocky plain where the trial was to be   
fought. Soon enough a red dot appeared on his radar display. As the targeting computer   
automatically selected this as his target, the Mauler's image appeared in the LIDAR   
imaging display on the left of the cockpit.   
  
The sniper reticule clicked up and Mikyle focused in on the incoming battlemech. To   
most others, the block like, humanoid shape of the Mauler was an awesome, imposing   
sight. To Mikyle, it was scrap. The red rings and lock on tone sounded. He pulled his   
trigger and a salvo of LRM 20's screamed from the shoulder mounted launchers.   
  
Mikyle smiled with satisfaction as the missiles slammed into the Mauler, knocking it   
back several steps before falling over onto its back. That would give Mikyle about twenty   
to thirty seconds to close with the target while it stood up. Accelerating to full and   
leaping down the ridge he charged across the broken, rocky ground. The pounding feet of   
his mech kicked up a massive cloud of dust that might provide some cover.  
  
Almost as soon as Rentoshi's mech had regained its feet he was hit by the Mad Cat 2's   
extended range lasers, cracking the thick armour-glass of the cockpit. "A little closer and   
I'd have been slag," He thought as he brought his guns to bear on the charging Clan   
mech.  
  
"Stravag, he's still alive," Mikyle shouted aloud. It wouldn't matter. He fired his twin   
auto-cannons, the heavy armour peircing shells knocking the Mauler back against a   
massive boulder. But an enemy always fights hardest when he's trapped. That what   
Mikyle's instructors had always told him. And this was the reason why.  
  
As the Mad Cat 2 closed in for the kill, Rentoshi fired all his weapons at once. The   
combined impact of his quad medium lasers, quad auto-cannons and twin LRM 10's   
striking all at once staggered Mikyle's Mad Cat 2 and almost knocked it over.  
  
"That's it, this desgra is so dead there're going to need tooth picks to get him out of my   
mech's foot joints," Mikyle shouted in rage.  
  
Firing his auto-cannons and lasers at the same time, he blew off the Mauler's right arm   
and then chewed up its leg. Rentoshi responded by firing his twin LRM racks, launching   
them with out lock, desperate to try and fend off the enraged Jade Falcon.  
  
Mikyle engaged his jump jets again, leaping clear over the wild missile salvo. Despite its   
size the Mad Cat 2 was still a surprisingly nimble mech. Landing just in front of the   
Mauler he aimed all his weapons strait into the mech's chest. At this range, even the   
Mauler's thick armour wouldn't protect it.   
  
Rentoshi hit the eject and the Mauler's head blasted off just as the Mad Cat 2's lasers,   
shells and missiles ripped through the chest and set off its ammo and blasting it apart   
from inside.  
  
Inside the Clan mech's cockpit, Mikyle shielded his eyes and laughed as the hulking   
assault mech detonated in a blinding flash. As the dust and haze cleared, he noticed the   
escape pod from the mauler, parachuting down to the ground and smiled sadistically.  
  
The escape pod hit the ground with a bone jarring impact. Rentoshi winced as the pod hit   
the ground. His arm hurt and he thought that it might be broken but at least he was alive.   
As he popped the hatch, the heat outside like a wave suddenly hit him. He had forgotten   
how hot it was out here, having been in the relative comfort of the air-conditioned mech   
cockpit.  
  
Examining a map he had with him, he figured it was maybe five kilometres back to the   
dropship. Then he felt some thing, a sort of rhythmic pounding, getting closer. Blind   
panic suddenly hit him as the realisation of what it was dawned on him.   
Sprinting in a direction that he was sure was away from the pounding he ran for his life.   
He ran faster than he had ever run in his life, faster than he thought was possible for any   
one to run.  
  
Then the object of his terror showed itself. Mikyle's mech jump-jetted over the ridge and   
thundered towards him. As the huge war machine stomped towards him, shaking the   
ground like an earthquake, Heero Rentoshi finally understood Mikyle's threat. "Eth, Star   
Captain, Eth." As he said these last words to himself, a great shadow covered him and his   
world exploded into darkness with a sickening crunch.  
  
With his opponent crushed, Mikyle's honour was satisfied. Later he would return at his   
leisure to claim a suitable trophy from the wreckage of the crushed Mauler or from his   
comrade if they were idiotic enough to stay any longer.  
  
Once that was done he would return to his duties. This was a minor inconvenience,   
nothing more. Maybe the next challenger would be a little more Sport.  
  
  
End.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
